Noise cancelling microphone for full coverage style helmets

Abstract

Noise cancelling microphone construction for placement in a full coverage style helmet to secure and hold a noise cancelling microphone in the plenum between the inner liner and outer shell of the helmet, the construction having a front boot and a rear boot. The front boot has a speech receiving front open sleeve leading to front ports of the microphone, a flat annular flange attached to a cylindrical end of the front sleeve, and a second sleeve attached at one of its cylindrical ends to the other side of the flange, the second sleeve securing the front part of the microphone, the flange and second sleeve encompassing an opening in the helmet inner liner. A box formed on the front sleeve receives noise in the helmet environment, passes the noise through an opening in the annular flange and through the opening in the helmet inner liner. The rear boot has a cylinder with one closed end to hold and secure the rear part of the microphone, and an elongated sound passageway attached to its outside communicating with the cylinder interior through an opening. The sound passageway conducts noise from the front boot box to the rear ports of the held noise cancelling microphone. Thus noise present within the helmet environment is conducted to the noise cancelling ports of the microphone to cancel like noise entering the front ports of the microphone.

We claim: 
     
       1. Noise cancelling microphone construction for use in a full coverage style helmet worn by an operator to reduce the effects of environmental noise and other extraneous sounds present inside the helmet upon the speech of the operator into the noise cancelling microphone, the helmet of the type having an inner liner encompassed by an outer shell with a plenum therebetween, the noise cancelling microphone residing substantially in the plenum, the noise cancelling microphone of the type having rear ports located in the rear portion of the microphone housing to receive noise for cancellation of like noise entering through ports in the front portion of the microphone housing, said noise cancelling microphone construction comprising: a front boot operably attached to the helmet inner liner, said front boot receiving and securing the front portion of the noise cancelling microphone housing, said front boot also including means for conducting the environmental noise and other extraneous sounds present inside the helmet to the rear ports of the noise cancelling microphone; and   a rear boot situated substantially in the plenum between the helmet inner liner and the helmet outer shell, said rear boot receiving and securing the rear portion of the noise cancelling microphone housing, said rear boot also including means for conducting the environmental noise and other extraneous sounds present inside the helmet to the rear ports of the noise cancelling microphone wherein the environmental noise and other extraneous sounds present inside the helmet and entering the front of the noise cancelling microphone are cancelled by the same environmental noise and other extraneous sounds entering the rear ports of the noise cancelling microphone.   
     
     
       2. The noise cancelling microphone construction as defined in claim 1 wherein said means for conducting the environmental noise and other extraneous sounds of said front boot acts co-jointly with said means for conducting the environmental noise and other extraneous sounds of said rear boot. 
     
     
       3. The noise cancelling microphone construction as defined in claim 2 wherein said front boot defines an annually shaped flange having a first flat side and an opposite second flat side, a front sleeve, and a rear sleeve, said front sleeve attached to said first flat side of said annular flange and said rear sleeve attached to said second flat side of said annular flange, said front sleeve directed to receive the speech of the operator. 
     
     
       4. The noise cancelling microphone construction as defined in claim 3 wherein the helmet inner liner includes an opening therethrough, and said rear sleeve and said second flat side of said annular flange operably engage the opening through the helmet inner line in a secure arrangement. 
     
     
       5. The noise cancelling microphone construction as defined in claim 4 wherein said annular flange has a central opening, said central opening communicating said first sleeve to said second sleeve, said central opening exposing the front ports of the noise cancelling microphone to the first sleeve and to the speech of the operator. 
     
     
       6. The noise cancelling microphone construction as defined in claim 5 wherein said means for conducting the environmental noise and other extraneous sounds of said front boot include a box construction attached to said first flat side of said annular flange and to said first sleeve, said box construction acting co-jointly with said means for conducting the environmental noise and other extraneous sounds of said rear boot. 
     
     
       7. The noise cancelling microphone construction as defined in claim 6 wherein said box construction of said front boot includes a plurality of side walls protruding radially from said first sleeve, two of said plurality of side walls connected to said annular flange, said side walls defining a box open on at least one side to receive the environmental noise and other extraneous sounds present in the helmet. 
     
     
       8. The noise cancelling microphone construction as defined in claim 7 wherein said annular flange includes a second opening therethrough, said second opening communicating with said box construction to allow passage of the environmental noise and other extraneous sounds through said annular flange. 
     
     
       9. The noise cancelling microphone construction as defined in claim 8 wherein said rear boot defines a cylinder with cylindrical walls and one closed end, said cylinder receiving and securing the rear portion of the noise cancelling microphone housing, and said means for conducting the environmental noise and other extraneous sounds of said rear boot include an elongated sound conducting passageway attached to said cylinder. 
     
     
       10. The noise cancelling microphone construction as defined in claim 9 further including a first opening through said cylindrical walls, said first opening communicating said cylinder to said sound passageway wherein sounds in said sound passageway enter said cylinder and into the rear ports of the noise cancelling microphone. 
     
     
       11. The noise cancelling microphone construction as defined in claim 10 wherein said sound passageway includes a perpendicularly extending lip, said lip engaging the opening through the helmet inner liner inside the helmet. 
     
     
       12. The noise cancelling microphone construction as defined in claim 11 wherein said lip co-acts with said box construction of said front boot to define a front entrance to said box construction for the entrance of the environmental noise and other extraneous sounds wherein noise presence in the helmet may enter the box construction, pass into said sound passageway of said rear boot to said first opening in said cylinder of said rear boot, and into the rear ports of said noise cancelling microphone in order to cancel like noise entering the front ports of the noise cancelling microphone. 
     
     
       13. The noise cancelling microphone construction as defined in claim 12 further including fastening means, said fastening means interposed said closed end of said cylinder of said rear boot and the helmet outer shell, said fastening means securing said rear boot to the helmet outer shell. 
     
     
       14. The noise cancelling microphone construction as defined in claim 8 wherein said second sleeve includes an annularly shaped groove formed therein, said annularly shaped groove encompassing an annularly shaped ridge on the noise cancelling microphone housing to help secure the front portion of the noise cancelling microphone housing in said second sleeve. 
     
     
       15. The noise cancelling microphone construction as defined in claim 12 wherein said cylinder includes an annularly shaped groove formed therein, said annularly shaped groove encompassing an annularly shaped ridge on the rear portion of the noise cancelling microphone housing to help secure the noise cancelling microphone in said cylinder. 
     
     
       16. The noise cancelling microphone construction as defined in claim 12 wherein said cylinder includes a second opening formed in said cylindrical walls of said cylinder, said second opening of said cylinder permitting the passage of electrical wires emanating from the noise cancelling microphone. 
     
     
       17. The noise cancelling microphone construction as defined in claim 12 wherein said front boot and said rear boot comprise pliable material. 
     
     
       18. The noise cancelling microphone construction as defined in claim 17 wherein said first sleeve has a length, said length is adjusted by cutting, and is adjustable to the desires of the operator.